


That Heavy Feeling

by Ayessel



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - No Mark Jefferson (Life is Strange), Alternate Universe - No Powers, Chloe is Flirty, F/F, I just want my girls to be happy for once okay, Max is shy, Perspective switches between Chloe and Max, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:54:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28172754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ayessel/pseuds/Ayessel
Summary: Max walks into a coffee shop and is hit by a sudden and overbearing crush on the barista that works thereotherwise know as Max realizes she's gay seeing a cute barista clichéfollows Max up to and through her first date with Chloe.
Relationships: Maxine "Max" Caulfield/Chloe Price
Comments: 25
Kudos: 29





	1. Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! Thank you so much for viewing my work! This is my first ever fanfiction and is actually the first thing I've written in years, so please let me know if you enjoyed it! I've been a fan of Life is Strange for years and I've just recently gotten into reading an insane amount of Max/Chloe fics and the urge to write one of my own just got too overwhelming so here I am, If you happen to really enjoy this and want me to continue it please let me know! This definitely won't be a one-off thing

Max was having a relatively fun time exploring Arcadia Bay again after coming back from Seattle, the waves of nostalgia that hit her when she saw things that hadn't changed over the 5 years she was away, were pleasant as she reminisced on her time there when she was young. She had recently been accepted into Blackwell Academy, a senior Highschool that specialized in Arts and Sciences, which Max was ecstatic about because of her love for photography. She had never thought She would get to even apply to a photography course as good as the one at Blackwell never mind actually be accepted into it.

With nerves riding high and her excitement progressively draining, Max had decided that she probably needed a caffeine boost and went on the hunt for a coffee shop. looking around she saw a few coffee shops dotted around the place but was surprised to see that they were occupied.

_huh, who would've thought that the coffee shops near the school with a prestigious art program would be full_? Max thought to herself sarcastically before swinging herself around a corner to look at the next few rows of shops, her camera back swaying in time with her strides. Max's eyes locked on the sign hanging above one of the shops, it was black with a simple white graphic of steaming coffee in a mug that was comprised only of the outlines of the mug. The text above the Graphic read 'The Pirate's Getaway'. Max giggled to herself as she realized that the graphic must have been designed after a Jolly Rodger flag but for coffee.

Walking up to the door of the shop and peering into the window. Max was delighted to see that it was empty, _seems like the shop must be fairly new, seeing as everyone will already have had their preferred shop it must be difficult to pull in new customers early on_ Max thought absently. Swallowing the anxiety that builds in her when she enters shops for the first time, she pushes the door open and notices the bell in the corner ringing _Really? a bell? I thought everywhere either just had staff always ready or changed to one of those annoying electronic sensors... I like it, the feeling the little jingle adds to the place; it’s a nice touch_ Max thought to herself before her thoughts were interrupted by a shout coming from somewhere around the back of the shop

"Take your time deciding what you want, I'll be with ya in just a minute!" came the shout from some nebulous location in the back of the store, Max froze in place with her arm on her elbow, crossing over her stomach; a nervous tick she had noticed she did frequently upon moving into the Blackwell dorms.

Standing at the counter waiting for the barista to appear Max bit her bottom lip still in her nervous stance. Taking a glance at the menu she saw an assortment of drinks on offer, from coffee to tea, there were even a few juice drinks available in a fridge behind the counter. The place seemed well stocked to Max, with all the choices you’d be hard pressed to find something you didn’t at least like here. Max’s nervous train of thought was interrupted again by a voice directly in front of her

“What can I getcha?” Said the voice, Max Jumped slightly and turned to where the voice had come from and froze as she caught sight of the person. Vibrant blue hair and tattoos that were slightly covered by her work attire and a smile that seemed to go right through Max. She could physically feel the gears in her head turning as she tried to process the crushing feeling found in her chest at the sight of the girl smiling at her.

“Hello? You good? I asked for what you wanted to get…” The blue haired barista trailed off giving Max a slightly concerned look

“Oh-! U-Uhm, coffee…. Black coffee…” Max responded feeling her cheeks flush with a little colour at the realization that she had actually completely froze at the sight of the girl _oh god does she think I’m weird now?_ Max worried as she watched the girl nod once before responding

“Gotcha, one black coffee coming right up” the girl said with a wink before turning to pour from a pot of coffee that probably had been prepared in advance

Max’s eyes went wide as she caught the wink and flushed an even deeper shade of red as her gaze locked firmly on the floor _god why am I so flustered just because a girl winked at me? What is this feeling in my chest when I look her in the eyes, those pretty blue ey-_ Max didn’t get further on that train of thought as she looked up to see the barista with a cup of coffee in a disposable cup, sharpie in hand

“What’s your name?” the barista asked with a smirk playing at her lips that Max barely took notice of

“Max…” she responded without second thought “I didn’t know you did the whole name on cups thing…” The brunette trailed off looking at the girl scribbling her name on the cup before handing it to her

“I don’t” she replied with a full smirk on her face this time “I only do it for the cute girls I want to know better” she said, followed by another wink before pausing slightly, leaning into the counter “That’ll be two dollars, I’m give you a slight discount for being the first customer of the day” she said smiling as Max handed over the money

“right….” Max said still slightly flustered and confused

“The names Chloe by the way, what brings you into my shop in the first place anyways?” the girl said still beaming a smile at Max which, to her seemed like a little more genuine than the standard customer service smiles she’s seen countless times

“uh… T-The sign...” Max nearly floored herself for stuttering, but she couldn’t help it since for some reason being under the gaze of Chloe made her feel really self-conscious “I liked the design since it reminded me of the Jolly Rodger flags, reminded me of my childhood when I was obsessed with pirates”

“No fucking way! That’s so cool, I didn’t think anyone would get it despite the fact I even called the place ‘The Pirate’s Getaway’” Chloe beamed at Max, and as a result Max genuinely thought for a moment that she was going to melt as the sudden realization hit her _This is a crush isn’t it? I don’t think there’s any other reason to explain why I’m so… happy that a stranger likes me_ the brunette wondered to herself

“Yeah, it was also because this place was empty, I like the quiet atmosphere of places like this when it’s just me In there” Max looked to the floor as she pondered a decision before making a snap decision _god I hope I don’t regret this_ she thought as she pulled a piece of paper from her bag and scribbled something on it before handing it to Chloe “I gotta go since I’ve not fully finished moving all of my stuff in but I’ll be back at some point!” she smiled warmly at Chloe before exiting in a hurry _I can’t believe I just did that…._

Chloe’s gaze was fixed on the piece of paper for a few minutes with a cheesy grin on her face

_“I really like you! Hopefully we can talk again sometime”_ read the piece of paper along with a phone number hastily scribbled underneath the message _oh we will talk again cutie and if this means what I think it means eventually it’ll be a lot more than talking…_ Chloe thought before wiping her thoughts clean in order to return back to customer service mode, but still unable to hide the sly smirk hiding just beneath the surface that she was trying to restrain


	2. Alice The Comfort Bunny

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max worries about when Chloe will call, Kate comforts her and the next day Max gets her call from Chloe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go with chapter number 2! I'm gonna try and make this one a little longer now that I know people do like my writing, It's given me a big confidence boost so thank you to everyone who left kudos or commented yesterday!

Max closed the door to her dorm room and let out a sigh she had been holding in since she gave Chloe her number and flopped down onto her bed face first _oh god, did I actually just give a girl I just met my number? does she think I'm weird or desperate now? why am I so worried about this? Is this actually a crush? I've never felt like this about anyone before never mind a girl oh god why did I even lie about not being fully moved in I've been unpacked for two days now..._ Max continued to worry about the exchange while lying in her bed for a while before deciding she needed a distraction, opening her laptop on her desk she began to study photography and maybe get some homework done.

Around 20 Minutes of attempting to study later and Max had decided this wasn't working _why can't I stop thinking about her?_ Max thought while fidgeting restlessly with her leg bouncing up and down because of her anxiety a _ll I can think about is the look she was giving me and the fact she called me cute..._ Max could feel a blush creeping up her face even at the thought of Chloe calling her cute. Still Fidgeting and worrying Max heard a soft set of knocks coming from her door

"Max?" came the even softer voice from behind her door _must be Kate then_ max thought as she could feel some of the anxiety melt away at just Kate's voice. Somehow the girl managed to always radiate this sweet energy that always either calmed Max down or cheered her up. Sometimes Max thought that Kate must have been a really fluffy small animal in a past life because there was just no way that a girl this nice could exist 

"Yeah Kate, gimme a second!" Max said just loud enough to penetrate the door before standing up and straightening her clothes that were very wrinkled from rolling around in her bed fretting about when Chloe would call if she even would. Opening the door Max saw Kate standing with her arms resting on one another across her chest, giving Max her usual smile that never failed to cheer her up "Hey Kate, what's up?" Max asked returning the bright smile to the blonde girl

"Hi Max, I wanted to ask If you wanted to come to my room for tea? I know the First week after just moving in is stressful for us all so I thought maybe we could wind down a bit" Kate said with her warm smile covering Max in reassurance, how could Max say no to this girl? It'd be like ignoring a kitten that wants to be pet, you just can't.

"Yeah, sure thing Kate, I'd Love to" Max replied stepping out of her room and closing the door, following Kate to her room. As soon as Max entered, she was taken back by how clean and organized everything was _oh wow first time seeing Kate's room and I wasn't expecting everything to be so tidy_ Max Thought to herself as she scanned around the room, she almost didn't want to sit down anywhere for fear of ruining the cleanliness of everything around her.

"You can Sit down Max it's fi-" Kate started to say with her knowing smile before she was cut off by a hushed squeal coming from Max

"Oh my god! Bunny!" Max yelled in a hushed tone trying not to scare the animal as she turned to Kate eyes wide and practically sparkling as she clasped her hands under her chin looking at Kate, her face basically painted with the question she wanted to ask, "Can I?" she asked cautiously

Kate simply grinned and gave a little sigh "Yes Max, you can pet the bunny" she said mirroring the question evident in Max's eyes "and the Bunny's name is Alice for your information..." Kate trailed off as she approached Alice's cage with a soft smile, hearing Max's excited 'sqee' noise that came from behind her.

Max sat down almost Immediately as Kate approached with Alice in hand, Max felt that If her eyes could convey anymore excitement, she'd elicit a drug test in order to make sure she was still in the right mind. As Kate tentatively place Alice on Max's lap, Max slowly place her hands near Alice making sure that she was stable and comfy in her lap before beginning to pet the bunny. Max nearly melted as she felt Alice's soft fur and a sudden revelation dawned on her _Kate is actually kinda like a bunny now that I think about it, her soft personality and cuteness just makes you want to protect her, like a little bunny_ Max giggled to herself at the thought as she absentmindedly stroked Alice, delighting in the feel of the soft fur ad the warmth in her lap as Kate looked at them both with her usual warm openness that mad Max feel at home with her/ Max had only known Kate for the few days that she was at Blackwell but she quickly warmed to the girl as she practically radiated happiness.

Max was thrown from her bunny euphoria by Kates soft voice "Max are you okay? I noticed today that you've been more anxious than what you'd expect from first week worries..." Kate let her voice trail away with the question so that Max could chose to answer or not. Max was surprised by how attentive Kate had been but was also confused at how Kate had actually noticed anything give how she had either been out or in her dorm room overthinking things about Chloe

"How did you notice I've been more wound up? I've been in my room or outside most of the day." Max asked with a little smirk as she was curious as to how the blonde actually knew something was up.

"Max, you may be oblivious to this fact but although the dorm floors are carpeted, they don't absorb sound well. I heard your leg bouncing like a jackhammer passing by and decided to ask you about it over tea since it always calms my nerves" Kate said with a knowing smirk as Max looked down in embarrassment, _I'll have to take note of that, thin walls and loud flooring, it's as if you can't even move an inch in this place without someone hearing it_ Max thought to herself absently as she debated telling Kate what she was worrying about or not _She's such a nice person she wouldn't judge me for thinking I like girls would she?_ Max looked up to see Kate with her soft smile looking back _does she ever stop smiling? point proven I guess I just can't see her being angry it's the the whole bunny thing again, you just can't imagine an aggressive bunny_

"Well..." Max trailed off as she tried to find the right way to word 'I think I realized I'm gay after exactly one meeting with a cute barista' before blushing immensely. "I... Think I have a crush on someone, and I gave them my number and I've been worrying I seemed too desperate..." Max's voice faded into a low whisper as her eyes fixed on Alice as she twitched her little nose, instantly making Max feel a little better.

"Well did you like him?" Kate asked, brows knitted in concern at how nervous Max seemed to her, just talking about a crush she had

"her..." Max corrected, her voice barely even a whisper as she continued to hyper focus on Alice's soft fur in her hand as she stroked the little bunny 

"oh... well did you like her?" Kate asked her question yet again now understanding why Max was a little apprehensive to talk about this subject specifically

Max's eyes widened is surprise as she looked up at Kate, who was still just looking at equipped with her signature warm smile and a little bit of concern behind her gaze. _of course,_ Max thought to herself, a smirk playing on her lips _why did I ever think this little ball of sunshine called Kate would ever judge me for something little like that_ She thought before giving a sigh and replying "Yeah, I did like her, she was really cute too..." Again, Max trailed off as she realized exactly what she was saying 

"Okay..." Kate said, the concern erased from her gaze like it never existed, instead a playful smirk took the place of her usual warm smile "and did it seem like she liked you?" she said now finding the situation kind of funny

Max thought for a moment before replying "I mean... She did call me cute and tried to get my name using the whole 'name one the coffee cup' thing, but what if she was just being nice?" Max asked with genuine concern, concern that was soon erased by Kates golden giggles filling the room, Max looked up to see Kate covering her mouth with her hand and giggling to herself as she looked down

"Sorry Max" she said before falling into another giggling fit, she eventually stopped when she caught the glare coming from Max that had "why are you laughing" written all over it "It's just... You really are oblivious aren't you, I always thought you were a bit aloof and airy but that's just funny Max, it’s painfully obvious she likes you too so just wait a little bit and she'll call. It's actually pretty obvious that she probably wants to wait a day, so _she_ doesn't look like the desperate one, trust me"

Max's Expression softened at the encouraging words from Kate, continuing to pet Alice she looked up and met eyes with Kate "Thank you so much for this... If Alice wasn't in my lap, I'd probably have hugged you by now" she admitted with a little smile. Max then gave a yelp of surprise as Kate leaned in and wrapped her arms around Max, taking her into a warm and comforting hug "I'm always open to talk to you, not just about your worries but just in general, you're welcome to come over for tea anytime okay?" she said with her warm smile once again plastered over her face _I wonder if that's just her resting face Max_ wondered as she carefully scooped Alice up and handed her back to Kate 

"Thanks Kate, really. I should probably get going, it's getting late and all this worryi-" Max was cut off by the yawn that broke through her sentence "-ng is making me super tired" She said finishing the yawn as she got up to go back to her room "Also Kate?"

"Yes Max?" Kate fired back in a curious tone

"Thanks for letting me pet Alice, I think she may be the cutest bunny ever" Max said with a smile directed at them both

"Yeah, I think she might be, see you later Max." came Kate's reply

"Yeah, see you later Kate" Said Max as she closed the door behind her, heading to her dorm she was intent on actually getting some sleep.

Chloe woke up early the day after getting Max's number, she was positively beaming as she got up around 4 hours earlier than she normally would on a Sunday and grabbed her phone, checking the time she saw it was 8 am. _should I call Max?_ she thought _I think she was a student, I never got the chance to ask, so would she be asleep now?_ Chloe continued the internal debate for the next hour until she snapped out of it by checking the time again

 _ah fuck it_ she thought as she scrolled through her contacts and found the newly added contact from yesterday, she had registered as "cutie" and hit the call button _I'm gonna end up calling eventually no need worrying about shit like what time it is if it isn't some fucking stupidly early time right?_ Chloe felt her heartrate almost double as the phone rang once, twice and on the third time the other end connected

"hrng... Hellooo?" the sleepy voice on the other end answered, Chloe almost melted at the sound of the Brunettes sleepy voice as she answered the phone 

"Hey! Max! It's me, Chloe! Y'know the cute barista you gave your number to?" Chloe said with a smirk as she could hear a distinct yelp and thud on the other side of the call. _Did she just fall out of bed?_ Chloe thought to herself as there was a slight pause on the other end of the line before the voice came through again

"Chloe!?" Max replied seeming a little surprised and... excited? at the realization it was her

"Yep, in the... disembodied voice? Nah doesn't have the same ring as 'In the Flesh' does. Speaking of, I wanted to ask you, I'm gonna be going to open my shop in like, an hour. Do you wanna come down and talk over coffee while I wait for some customers?" she asked with a sly grin once again playing at her lips

"Yes! I mean uh... Yeah sure I'll be there, see you in an hour then Chloe?" Chloe smirked as Max tried to hide her enthusiasm at the meeting 

"Sure thing cutie, see you then" Chloe couldn't help the massive smile that was now plastered on her face as she hung up and imagined the look on the brunettes face after what she just said 

"Well seems like today is just gonna be fucking fantastic" Chloe said to no one in particular as she started preparing to head out to open her shop

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's it for today! I won't be updating this everyday but I'll try to keep it quick so nobody is left waiting since I know how that feels too well, but anyways I'll see you in chapter 3!
> 
> Just a heads up though I might end up doing Chasemarsh in this fic eventually since it's a massive guilty pleasure ship of mine, so sorry if you don't like that type of thing


	3. Rude Awakenings and Flirty Baristas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max is a little too excited for her meeting with Chloe
> 
> Another Pricefield focused chapter! Yay!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Accidentally deleted my first draft of this chapter and I think my soul left my body... so sorry if the first part isn't as good as normal as I'm literally just re-writing it from memory ;-;

Max Groggily opened her eyes at the sound of her ringtone _Jesus I feel terrible who's calling me so damn early..._ Max pondered before realizations washed over her like a tidal wave o _h shit! someone's calling me!_ she screamed in her head as she bolted upright, a fresh dose of adrenaline waking her up completely. She practically threw her sheets of the bed trying to search for her phone before she grabbed it during the second ring.

Max slumped backwards onto her bed and as her new adrenaline abandoned her the tiredness increasing its grip on her once again as she answered upon the third ring not bothering to check what number or who it was on the other end of the line

"hrng... Hellooo?" she answered letting the sleep be evident in her voice _Yeah, whoever is on the other end of this call! let it be known you woke me up and I'm not happy about it!_ Max thought as she waited for a response from the caller, some reason as to why they're calling at 9 am on a Sunday of all times, she sighs looking at her alarm clock seeing the numbers taunting her with the thought of more sleep as the voice rang out next to her ear, surprising her as she realized who had actually called her

"Hey! Max! It's me, Chloe! Y'know the cute barista you gave your number to?" Max felt the familiar adrenaline resurface as her heartrate immediately doubled, shooting up again she failed to notice the sheets she had hurriedly thrown to the side wrapped around her foot, stopping her motion halfway and forcing her into a downwards tumble off the bed, with a yelp from Max. Max grabbed the phone after her brief impact and pressed it to her ear before she went to reply she thought to herself my phone definitely picked that fall up, it basically followed me down. Way to make a good second impression Max, fall over at the sound of their voice, could you be any more obvious?

"Chloe!?" Max exclaimed as she felt herself cringe at how the word had come out _great, now you're not just a klutz but a desperate one_ she said as she wondered what Chloe thought about her after hearing that _does she think I'm weird now? oh god and I thought I might have had a chance with her_

_"Yep, in the... disembodied voice? Nah doesn't have the same ring as 'In the Flesh' does. Speaking of, I wanted to ask you, I'm gonna be going to open my shop in like, an hour. Do you wanna come down and talk over coffee while I wait for some customers?"_ Max could feel her cheeks flushing at the proposition _Score! I still have a chance and... is this a date? god I want it to be a date so badly_ She looked down and realized that she still had her clothes on from yesterday _was I so worked up from my worries about her not calling I passed out in my clothes? First of all, ew, second of all, nice one Caulfield you're head over heels for a girl you literally met yesterday, have fun being the protagonist of some seedy romance novel!_ Max snapped herself out of her train of thought when she noticed she still had to give a reply

"Yes! I mean uh... Yeah sure I'll be there, see you in an hour then Chloe?" she said as she felt her soul facepalm at that horrendous attempt at a save

"Sure thing cutie, see you then" Max hear Chloe say accompanied by a beep signifying she had ended the call. _Holy fucking shit she did not just say that!_ Max's mind started functioning at around the speed of light as her brain tried to fully comprehend what had just been said to her before giving up and short circuiting completely. Restarting her brain max too not of everything she needed to do and how long she had to do it.

_Okay so, it's like a 15-minute walk to Chloe's shop so I have 45 minutes to get everything in order_ Max started to plan as she grabbed her shit and pulled it up to her nose to smell it before letting go in her disgust _okay first order of business. Shower and change of clothes... but this was my last clean hoodie.... damn it_ Max's mind raced as she grabbed her toiletries and rushed out of her door briefly colliding with someone

"Fuck! Watch it Lamefield I don't want your fashion sense rubbing off on me" Victoria glared icily at Max, clearly conveying her displeasure at having been run into, though Max was kind of tired of her bullshit over the moving in process and was in too good a mood to take any shit from anyone, riding the Adrenaline high from earlier she spoke before she'd regret it

"Can it, Victoria. Not in the mood for your shit today. Y'know if you keep singling me and Kate out people might start to think you secretly like us. is that it actually? you have a crush on Kate, so you pick on her? C'mon Victoria that is soooo Elementary school of you" she said, mimicking Victoria's usual speech when making fun of people with a smirk. Max's smirk was wiped off her face however at the expression she saw from Victoria. She had given Max an eerily worried look for what only felt like only half a second before slipping back into her 'Queen Bitch' persona

"We'll talk about this later, Maxine" she said, stepping forward and giving Max a firm antagonistic poke to the shoulder, before turning and beginning to make her way to the dorms exit

**"Max, never Maxine"** Max said sternly from behind Victoria before making her way into the showers. _That was a weird reaction from Victoria, I've never seen her break her façade before... did I... did I hit the nail on the head? does she actually have a crush on Kate? oh man that'd be hilarious, only if it were the case though_ She thought stripping and making her way into the middle cubicle in order to get clean

Approaching Chloe's shop was sending Max's nerves into overdrive, she had been hit by adrenaline with a phone call alone so walking back into her shop after all of this was setting her mind on fire. With no hoodies available to her she had instead opted for a long sleeve sweater instead with a doe on it for some sort of minimalist design going with the color scheme, she had also donned her usual pair of blue jeans which she had no shortage on, paired with converse and her camera bag _can never tell when you'll need it with you_ Max told herself mentally as she swallowed her anxiety and walked into the shop with a familiar tingle of the bell above the door

"Max!" came a shout from vaguely in front of her as she was engulfed in an embrace, the touch sending Max's brain into overdrive as the sensation felt like fire against her skin, though she noted it wasn't a painful feeling at all. Inhaling deeply as she returned the embrace, she could smell two distinct things, coffee and smoke. _never pinned Chloe as a smoker but why is the smoke a weirdly pleasant smell? is it because it's Chloe?_ she pulled away from her thoughts blushing as Chloe held her at arm’s length

"Woah did the hipster decide to dress up a bit for her date?" Chloe said with a grin plastered over her face at the joke

"In your dreams Chloe" max shot back with a grin of her own as Chloe blushed a little before responding

"Well... I don't know about that Maximus in my dreams you seem to be wearing considerably less..." Chloe remarked as her grin steadily got wider and wider before breaking into a smile as Max turned a lovely shade of crimson and whacked her playfully on the shoulder. "C'mon you walked right into that" she said turning away and walking back over to the counter

"Well... I uh.... You.... Perv" Max said as she dug herself into more and more of a hole conversationally all while her face looking like she's been hung upside down for a considerable amount of time

"Got that right babe, caught me red handed" Chloe remarked as she turned around with two mugs in hand, handing one to Max as she sat down by one of the tables next to the window "now sit that cute little ass of yours down we have a coffee date to get through" she said with an endearing smile as she sipped from her cup

"Date?" Max repeated as her brain short-circuited again _did she just call this a date!? oh my god is this a date? I didn't even think she liked me and now she's calling this a date?_

"Uh yeah? a cute freckled hipster girl walks into my shop all shy and gives me her number and I call her up for a meet next morning, if that isn't a date you're not holding a cup of black coffee right now..." Chloe said with a smile that said she was desperately trying to hold back giggles, Max nearly melted at the sight "don't tell me you're one of those airy oblivious hipster girls!? oh my god Max that's just too adorable!"

When max's brain finally caught up to what Chloe was saying she blurted out her response without thought "Am not! I wanted this to be a date! but I just don't get why you'd wanna go on a date with me! I'm a klutz and airy and awkward and shy and not at all pretty!" she got through her mini rant as Chloe got up from her seat and grabbed Max gently by the elbows

"Woah Max! calm it a bit on the self-deprecation okay? you're beautiful to me okay? I nearly froze when I first saw your cute freckled face on the other side of my counter. Sure, you may be airy and a klutz but I think that's adorable okay? In fact, lemme take you out of your comfort zone a bit to show you what I mean, give you a little confidence boost" Chloe said with a little smile to reassure Max as she looked at her

"Huh?" Max managed through her minds maze of confusion at the moment

"I dare you to kiss me..." Chloe said with a massive smirk aimed at Max

"what!?" Max managed to squeak out while processing Chloe's words _did I just hear her right?_

"I double dare you. Kiss me now, see what happens." Chloe said a with her smirk gone and a more serious tone donned her face before being replaced by another smirk "C'mon Mad Max live a little!"

Max stood for a second as her brain caught up with what Chloe was saying _okay so she definitely just dared me to kiss her.... but I've never kissed anyone befo-_ Max's thought were cut off by Chloe pulling her hands away and taking a step back, arms outstretched in a neutral pose. Max was hit by the realization that she felt extremely cold where Chloe had stopped her contact, and with that decided consequences be damned as she took a step forward bridging the gap between them

Placing her hands on Chloe's shoulder she tilted her head up and closed her eyes, moving their lips closer and closer until... they touched. The first contact was incredibly light and almost wasn't there in the first place, Max was taken by surprise as she felt Chloe's hand on the back of her head, pulling her up and Deeping the kiss. Max's hands moved from Chloe's shoulder to wrap around her waist instinctually as the kiss deepened. 

For the first time in her life Max wasn't thinking, she was living in the moment and the only thing she could concentrate on was Chloe's soft lips pressed against hers as they kissed in one another's embrace before abruptly they parted at the sound of the bell tingling again.

"shit!" Chloe sad looking into Max's eyes "I'll give you time to think over what just happened fully while I work, come back at 5 when I close up and I'll take you out to a place where we can talk some more properly, okay?"

Max merely nodded dumbstruck as she backed slowly out of the shop with a blush coating her face _okay that just happened, first kiss, and it was with Chloe, who I met yesterday. What. The. Fuck._

Walking back into the dorms in a haze Max only had one thought _I might actually love that girl... I barely know her but if this heavy feeling I get in my chest when I think about her is any evidence then I think I do._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if that seemed quite rushed, I'm still getting my footing with writing interactions between the two of them and honestly I just wanted to get something that big over with after deleting the first draft I promise to make he next one a better pace if this one felt like it went too quick!


	4. Queen Bee

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max has a talk with Victoria, much to her surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this'll be a shorter chapter, I was originally going to have this be in the same chapter as Chloe and Max's proper date but I decided to leave that for it's own chapter. Also sorry for no pricefield this chapter but i'll make up for it next chapter I promise ;) I just had to get this set up out of the way first

Max stumbled into her dorm room in a haze of euphoria, she was basically giggling to herself as she plopped herself down onto her bed and let out a long sigh she felt like she had been holding in for the entire day

"oh my god I really just did that" she said as the reality of things washed over her as she gave in and fell into a giggling fit with herself

"I just kissed a girl I met yesterday! Ha!" she managed between giggles "I'm really just head over heels for her aren't I?" bringing on another giggling fit from how absurd she found her current situation. Max's giggles were cut short as a loud series of knocks bounced around her room making her shoot bolt upright at the sudden noise

"Open up Max I can hear your hipster ass giggling like a little girl!" Max could hear someone on the other end of her door shout, she couldn't quite place the voice through the shock of having someone other than Kate knock on her door, coming back to her senses she managed to pinpoint who exactly was knocking on her door

"Seriously!" came Victoria's shout from the other side of the door. Max was shocked that Victoria would even touch her door with a ten foot pole never mind even go out of her way to talk to her _Queen bitch of Blackwell wants a chat, what could go wrong?_

"Max... It's important..." Victoria's voice trailed off momentarily losing her confidence before the loud knocks began bouncing around her room once again. Max was understandably confused, Victoria hadn't dropped the queen bee persona once the for the week everyone had been at Blackwell, not even with her very own groupies Taylor and Courtney. On top of all that she had pretty much relentlessly singled out both Kate and Max for teasing as they were the easiest targets, one a shy ball of positivity and the other a shy aloof hipster, they were literally easy pickings for the likes of her. So why the hell is she not only dropping the person not once but twice in front of the person she teases relentlessly and demanding to speak with her?

"O-okay gimme a sec!" Max shouted through the door trying to buy herself a few precious seconds to process exactly what the fuck was going on. Opening the door she saw Victoria on the other end with an Ice cold look of determination on her face as she pushed past Max into her room and pushed the door shut over Max, trapping Max between the door and Victoria herself, with hand against the door next her head

"Okay Caulfield, talk. How did you know?" Victoria said with her mouth forming a horizontal line on her face, the absolute image of seriousness

"Know what?" max tried to figure out what exactly she had meant considering most of the day had been a blur up until Chloe

"You know. Kate, how did you know?"

"I didn't." Max responded truthfully realization dawning on her _holy shit she actually does like Kate!_ "You've just confirmed it for me though" she said with a smirk aimed at Victoria, whose face immediately sunk into a frown

"Fuck!" Victoria shouted as she left her position pinning max to the door to run her hands through her hair sitting down on Max's bed before glaring up at Max

"You better not fucking tell anyone about this! Or I will have literally every student in Blackwell starting to believe some choice rumors about you, understand?"

"Jeez Victoria, you know my only friend here yet is actually just Kate herself? Why would I tell her the person that's been picking on her the most has a crush on her, you think she'd believe that?"

"Touché, still not a fucking soul hears about this, understand? I do have a reputation to uphold." Victoria whispers with a scowl on her face

"still I don't get why you haven't been nice to her at least if you like her, tried to be friends at least?"

"Really Max? I'd lose any fucking respect I actually have at this place, I can hear them now spreading rumors like 'queen dyke with a church girl fetish' It'd be worse than what I give you two"

"Okay so what's stopping you from getting to know her privately?" Max remarks slowly forming a plan in her head

"Well.. I... Uh... I feel like I can't considering how much of a bitch I've been to her" Victoria says blushing a little 

"Jesus Victoria not that privately! I mean meeting her in secret in the dorms and shit! where none of your lackeys can find out. Tell you what, if you promise to reign in the bitchiness outside of the private meetings and actually explain to Kate why you've treated her like shit minus the crush then I could probably take you along when I hang out with her in her room" Max said as sincerely as she could manage. Despite getting relentlessly teased by Victoria Max could never actually hate her, she was a good photographer and however much Max hated to admit it, she actually looked good in all the expensive shit she decided to wear

"Really!?" Victoria said shooting up and grabbing Max's shoulders. Realizing what she had done she blushed slightly before retreating a step "I can't promise anything but I'll try so could you get me a meeting with Kate?" Victoria said slipping back into her confident demeanor

"Sure thing Victoria" Max said with a little smile at her

"Thank you..." Victoria trailed off before heading to Max's door to exit, stopping as the door was almost pulled closed "and when we're alone, call me Vic, it's what my friends call me" she said with the hint of a smile before pulling the door fully closed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it for this chapter, sorry if Victoria feels out of character for you, I just can't help but see her as putting on a front with her being really sweet really but still bossy and confident! anyways feedback is much appreciated since i'm still iffy whether my character interactions feel somewhat true to character


	5. Mini-Chapter: Chloe's perparation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe's 30 min prep before the date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This won't be a full chapter, just a cute little scene to let you know I'm still writing for this fic I'm just a bit stuck on where i wanna take it.
> 
> hope you like this lil scene while I try to think up how I wanna write the actual date. Sorry for the delay though! I've been sick and plagued with a little bit of writers block so please do forgive me if the next update takes a few days.

Chloe was cleaning up the shop after closing up. having 30 minutes before Max would show up for their date she decided to clean up a bit to make the shop a bit less of a mess when she arrived. _who the fuck just leaves a half-eaten sandwich on the table? I put a trash can by the door specifically to stop people doing this shit..._ While picking up the sandwich Chloe decided to zone out for a bit while she cleaned. Putting her headphones in she started to dance around the shop, cleaning as she went, mouthing lyrics and miming playing instruments as the shop got progressively cleaner and cleaner. Having finished everything in 15 mins Chloe was using the extra time to psyche herself up for the date, putting on her Firewalk playlist and jamming out in the back of the shop, dancing her way backwards into the main entrance of the shop she twirled in time with the music and immediately fell back with an exasperated 'Fucking shit!', feeling her soul leave her body at the sight of the small freckled hipster sitting in one of the chairs, covering her mouth trying to avoid giggling at the blue haired barista.

"Since when have you been sitting there!?" Came the surprised yelp from Chloe, music still blaring from her headphones, now laying undisturbed on the floor.

"I only sat down just now, but I've been outside since you started cleaning... I couldn't help but watch. You're really cute when you dance..." said the brunette with a giggle as she slipped her camera back into her bag

"could've warned me before you decided to appear like some hipster ninja." Chloe fired back as she stood up and dusted her ripped jeans down "you better not have taken any photos" she said firing a soft glare at Max

"oh I did, they'll make good additions to my photo wall" Max said picking up the small pile of Polaroids she'd placed on the table 

"or good additions to your spank bank" Chloe added with snicker to try to deflect from the blush that was present on her face at the moment

"Well... I... shut up..." Looking away with blush Max stood up. "Relax Maxi I was joking..." Chloe pat Max on the head gently before continuing "anyways... ready for our lil date Mad Max?" Chloe remarked winking at Max as she walked over to the entrance, opening the door for the brunette

"mhm" came the response as Max nodded her head at Chloe, making her way through the open door

"My Truck's the piece of shit just in front of you there hop in and we'll be off to our little spot"

"Nice, I'll do just that" Max said with a content hum, hoping in the truck

Jumping into the driver side Chloe leans over and plants a little kiss on Max's cheek, giggling as she watches her blush.

"Let's hit the road!"


	6. The "Date"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloe takes Max to a place that's special to her

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another update! sorry again for the gap in updates but I kinda burnt out on what little motivation I had in the first place, no worries though! i'll continue this and also probably spit out a few one-shots that have been bouncing around in my head for a little while

Max shifted around a little uncomfortable at the silence that gripped the interior of Chloe's truck, they had been driving for a few minutes so It wasn't really an awkward silence, Max would just rather know where they were actually going but was too shy to actually ask, that is until she turned to Chloe to see a smirk creeping up her face.

"So, are you gonna tell me where we are going or are you gonna act all mysterious for the entire drive?" Letting out a cheeky giggle Chloe's eyes darted to look over Max's face for a second before moving back to the road

"Where we're headed is for me to know and you to find out I wanna see your face at the view" Chloe's eyes widen at the piece of information she let slip accidentally "Fuck me and my big mouth!" she explained looking a little exasperated

"That can be arranged" came a small murmur from Max in response. Chloe's eyes shot up into the stratosphere as she caught what Max had actually said "Kidding, obviously. You kinda walked face first into that" Fiddling with her hoodie she snickered looking back out the window "and lemme guess, we're going to the lighthouse? it's literally the only place in the Bay with any view..." She said with a knowing grin

"yeah, I kinda did, and yes we are. I still wanna see your reaction to the view though, it’s hella cool" Chloe shifts a little "I never asked but you got to Blackwell, don't you?"

"mhm, the elite school filled with elite assholes. Found myself with a scholarship" Max smiles remembering getting the acceptance letter and nearly jumping 4 feet in the air on pure joy alone

"cool, so what's you poison there, you one of the arty hipsters - which I'm assuming you are - or are you more the sciency type of nerds?" Chloe askes with a bit of a smirk as she teased Max

Max shakes her head with a grin playing at her lips "Photography. I've been into it ever since I was little, my dad had this polaroid camera he doesn't use anymore so her let me mess around with it. Ever since that day polaroid film has been a reoccurring present at birthdays, he would always tell me not to use it all at once as if he was giving me an allowance or something" she said with fond smile at the memories

"Woah that's hella weird my Dad had a polaroid camera! I never messed around with it, but he sure did love taking pictures with it at Christmas..." Chloe trailed off with a similar fond smile as she recalled her past

Max could feel the truck start to slow until it came to a stop with Chloe getting out the Driver side, Max started to climb out herself "Just a little hike up to the lighthouse, c’mon! you're gonna love this" she said as she nodded her head behind her in the direction of the Lighthouse before turning and walking up the path, with Max beginning to follow her not soon after.

Walking up the path Max spotted a doe walking into the trees by a rock and did a little silent jog over as she pulled her polaroid camera out and crouched down, framing the doe with the afternoon sun illuminating it in a hazy warm yellow color, snapping the photo the doe ran, Max took the polaroid and began to shake it as it developed _sorry about scaring you like that_ she thought absently as she looked down on her photo with a smile "Hurry up Mad Max! you're gonna get lost in nature at this rate!" came a playful shout from further up, Max put the polaroid away in her bag before walking up to meet Chloe, she was sitting on a bench overlooking the bay the sun in front of her, leaving her a silhouette against the sky, she had her elbows resting on the backrest of the bench and her head was slightly tilted Max's breath caught in her throat at the sight, feeling the camera in her hand she approached quietly as she framed the shot at took it.

The sudden click and flash mad Chloe jump slightly as she turned around to look at Max holding a polaroid camera in hand as it spit out a picture from the front "you just couldn't resist the pretty view huh?" she said with a smirk as she watched the blush creep up Max's face 

Without looking away from Chloe's eyes Max smiled as she shot back "nope" and giggled as Chloe turned back to the view of the Bay trying to hide the blush that had intruded on her face as well

"c’mon!" Chloe pats the spot next to her as she scoots up the bench a little "plant that ass of yours down we got discussin' and shit to be doing"

"okay discuss away! penny for your thoughts or whatever..." Max says as she puts the polaroid and her camera in her bag, sitting next to Chloe and locking eyes with her as she lets out a sigh and her expression softens a little

"Okay... so I gave you time to think over what happened. I know it'll be sudden, and we just met like 2 days ago or some shit like that, but I really like you so do you wanna try it out? see where things go?" She said with a look in her eyes that Max couldn't quite place but it was an inviting, soft look. It was hopeful.

"Try what out?" Max asked still trying to process the direction the conversation was going in

"Wanna be my girlfriend? I can give you a discount on coffee if it sweetens the deal..." she trailed off with a hint of a smile 

Max's face went through about 4 different expressions in the span of a second before settling on a pleasantly surprised look "I hardly know you..." she said suddenly, Chloe seemingly deflated at the four words "but..." Max said with a smile plastered on her face as Chloe seemed to reflate with newfound hope "If you told me a little about yourself, I'd be more willing to go out with you..." Max bit her bottom lip waiting for Chloe's reaction

"Okay we'll buckle up Max you're in for a tearjerker" she said with a sort of bittersweet chuckle "Okay so I’ll skip my childhood for the most part and just get into what made me the version you're looking at. My dad died in a car crash when I was 14. He went out to pick my mom up from her job never came back. I broke when the police turned up, shut myself in for what felt like weeks, I acted out, swore, did drug, wrecked my room, and was an all-around little shit... I was in a pretty bad way until I met Rachel. Rachel was my angel, I felt safe with her, I felt like my problems just flew away on the wind when we hung out. It was just me and her, separate from everything, from the world. Rachel saved me from myself after I had a bit of a self-destructive streak after my mom remarried to a real piece of work. Guy didn't even know how to handle normal kids never mind a rebellious one, treated me like a soldier and had none of my attitude, I hated his guts and he hated mine. For the time I was with Rachel everything clicked and felt right, I was gonna ask her out, but she left, just about a year ago. She left me a note saying she had gone to LA to be an actress and never spoke to me after." Chloe sniffed as tears welled up in her eyes, it was evident that this was still a little fresh and painful for her "I broke again, I was in more pieces than I had ever been I didn't act out like I usually did I just retreat into my room and shut down. Oddly enough, David, the guy my mom remarried was the one to check up on me first, he helped me out of the rut I was in after a few months of careful conversations on his part. Afterwards I decided to get my shit together, I saved up money from multiple part time jobs until I had enough to buy the shop, I've been running it for like 2 months, it's stressful but I like it, gives me something to do, a purpose. Thankfully, a few of the jobs I had done saving up for the place was Barista work, so I wasn't shaky starting out handling orders... But yeah, that's my life in a nutshell, I saw you and felt this connection, both you and Rachel are kinda similar, you have this ethereal feel to you that draws me in I can't quite place why but even having met you like yesterday or whatever I feel comfortable around you, not to mention you were hella adorable... I just you to give us… Me, a chance" She looked up and met Max's eyes to see that Max had a smile on her face and confusion washed over her

Max simply put her hand on Chloe's chin and puller her into a kiss, pouring as much of her emotion as she could into it, trying to convey what she couldn't accurately portray with words. Locked into the embrace Chloe relaxed and practically melted into the kiss as her hand cupped Max's face as their kiss deepened Chloe feeling Max's soft lips pressed against hers and feeling her world invert itself

Pulling away for breath Max rest her head against Chloe's, smiling as their eyes locked onto another's "Before we make this any more official, I have a question I've wanted to ask for a bit..."

"hmm?" Chloe responded pulling back and sitting up waiting for the question

"why is your nickname for me Mad Max?" Max was confused when Chloe immediately switched to a bewildered expression

"you haven't seen the movie? came out this year in like May?" Chloe giggled out in genuine surprise as Max still just sat there confused

"what movie?" Max watched as Chloe's bewildered expression turned to genuine shock

"Oh my fucking god. Well at least that settles what we're gonna do. You're coming with me back to my place for a movie night and we're watching Mad Max: Fury Road. No arguments."

Chloe got up and practically dragged a confused Max back to her truck all the while babbling about the movie and how "fucking amazeballs" it was

* * *

Max sat up in Chloe's bed and looked at the blue haired girl as she poised herself to jump, preparing herself for the worst she managed to salvage Chloe's laptop before she heard a distinct "Witness me!!" from behind her as Chloe landed with a thump on the bed, tickling Max with evil precision

"C-Chloe s-s-stop it!" Max managed between giggles as Chloe relentlessly tickled the girl, managing to push her off and gather her breath Max fell back onto the bed with Chloe following suit. Max snuggled up to her and let out a sigh

"Y'know I could see this working, really I feel like I've known you for years I've never been able to just have fun with someone like this before" she said turning to look Chloe in the eyes

"Well then feel free to crash here, it's kinda late and I could see you nearly dozing off in the last 10 minutes" Chloe remarked as she planted a kiss on the brunette’s head, and proceeding to ruffle her hair slightly

"hey, at least I did stay awake, I'll admit it _was_ 'fucking amazeballs' as you put it"

"see what did I tell you Mad Max?"

"Finally, I understand the nickname" Max let out a chuckle as she felt her eyes getting heavy slowly falling asleep next to the barista with one thought in her head _Fuck this might actually turn out to be something amazing_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so that's the date! for no reason what so ever Mad Max: Fury Road totally came out in 2013 I totally didn't just put it in because I felt like it! nope not at all! Now that the main event I had in mind is over and done with feel free to comment scenarios you wanna see and I'll see if I can write them, fresh ideas are appreciated so that I don't short circuit my brain trying to think of them by myself. Thanks for reading and I'll see you next chapter!
> 
> Also! Random piece of information if you didn't know, The song by Firewalk in Before the Storm is 'Are You Ready For Me' by Pretty Vicious, I recommend them, they're as close as you can get to actually listening to Firewalk in real life I've been addicted to their music for a few weeks


	7. Apologies and Update

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Apologies and explanations of where I've been and what's happening with this fic

Okay, so. Haven't touched this fic in a month, that's on me. I'm here to say I'm sorry for that because I know how awful fics not being updated is. I haven't been updating this fic because of school and applying for uni but also because of major writers block that has been and still is kicking my ass. Thankfully the place where I stopped writing isn't too bad of an ending for the fic, sure there are some loose ends but they go on a first date and Max and Chloe are happy.

The one thing I'd hate to do is if anyone were actually looking forward to this and I cut it off short so if you really are _that_ disappointed that I'm ending this where it is then let me know! and by all means I'll continue it. Since I'm only ending it here under the assumption that no one will be overly disappointed at where it ended.

sorry for falling short of the initial promise, I'm getting kind of used to doing that now unfortunately. I'm still not fully convinced people even still care about this fic so If you read up to this point i'd like to say thank you so much for taking the time to read my little story and I hope you enjoyed it.


	8. Queen Bee 2 Electric Boogaloo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max wakes up and suffers the consequences of a friendship with the one and only Queen Bitch of Blackhell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so continuing time! not entirely over my writers block but the continuation of the story literally came to me in a dream after deciding to stop the fic so who am I to deny whatever cosmic being planted the idea in my head?
> 
> also sorry if Victoria seems wildly OOC I've been reading too much Victoria/Max fics so my perception of her may be a tiny bit distorted

Max woke up feeling warm all over. She felt content with where she was and couldn't stop the smile spreading across her face for seemingly no reason. That's when she felt the pressure bearing down on her from the crook of her neck. Looking down Max could see and all too familiar head of blue hair nestled firmly against her collarbone. Max smiled down at Chloe and began absent mindedly stroking her hair as she reflected on the past few days

"From strangers to girlfriends in like 2 days, give or take a few hours... wowsers..." Hearing and feeling a yawn come from the girl Max's attention was brought back to the girls sleepy form pressed against her

"Crazy shit happens when you just let life takes it's course huh?" Chloe said sitting up and rubbing the sleep from her eyes

"Yeah I guess it does" Max smiled and leaned in to press a soft kiss against Chloe's lips, pulling back with a smirk to mirror Chloe's mischievous grin

"Fuck so _now_ you take the initiative? no dares necessary?" She said in a teasing tone poking Max in the forehead and pushing her back in a teasing manner

"Yeah cause now I'm not being dared to kiss a stranger you dork" Max fired back and they both descended into a giggling fit

The upbeat aura of the day was cut short by Max's phone beeping loudly as she got a string of messages, looking to the time on her phone Max sighed and feel back onto the bed with a groan of frustration

"Fuuuuuuuck I'm so late for school" 

"Ah shit yeah probably shouldn't have scheduled the big event on a school night huh? Fuck, my bad max"

"It's fine missing a day of school isn't gonna kill me I can just say I was sick and catch up"

"Ooh going on a rebel streak are you? first you start dating a punk with dyed hair and tattoos, and now you're skipping school? You'll be crashing parties and smoking weed in a weeks time if left unchecked!"

"oh shut up, shouldn't you also be tending to your shop by now?"

"I get most of my customers at noon anyways I have like 2 hours to spare, one of the perks of being your own boss"

"Your own boss... Is that why you wanted to open a shop for yourself instead of just going into work? Didn't like being bossed around?"

"Yeah something like that only I don't mind some people bossing me around" Chloe gave a suggestive wink and a pause to look at Max "It's just that I find that the whole store manager dickwad types get their kicks from giving minimum wage workers shit, you may have noticed I'm not one to lay down and take shit so I doubt I'd be able to hold a job if I didn't become my own boss"

"yeah that makes sen-" Max was cut off by another string of notifications

"Ooh someone's a popular hipster, c'mon who's blowing up your phone?"

Max checked her phone and when she saw who the messages were from her eyebrows shot up into her hairline at the shock of who was texting her

"Victoria Chase..." she said in a surprised whisper

Checking the messages Max was still slightly in shock

**Victoria:** max

**Victoria:** any news about a meeting with Kate? Please?

**Victoria:** hipster

**Victoria:** lamefield

**Victoria:** you aren't in your dorm where the fuck are you?

**Victoria:** why aren't you in class???

**Victoria:** you better fucking text me when you see these

Max sent back a reply as soon as she read the last message

**Max:** jeez you didn't need to nuke my phone, I was on a date I'm staying at their place. I won't be in school today but I'll ask Kate if she's cool with you coming with for tea okay?

**Victoria:** yeah thanks

**Victoria:** wait you were on a fucking date??

**Max:** is that really so much of a surprise?

**Victoria:** duh! the dopey loner hipster was on a date! at Blackwell that's basically national news.

**Max:** I'm not dopey. I do see what you mean though. gtg talk to you later vic

**Victoria:** yeah talk to you later

Max let out another sigh as her phone fell from her hand

"So what did icky vicky want with you?" Chloe said looking down on the brunette laying on her bed with a cheeky grin

"Oh please, she isn't _that_ bad, she was bothering me about helping her, it's a long story and I don't wanna tell you anything before she's ready since despite everything she's done somehow we've ended up friends" Max trailed off, sitting up to be met with a pouting faced Chloe

"you're pouting isn't going to help y'know, you're cute but I'm not gonna betray my friend's trust. Think of it this way, if I won't even tell icky vickys secrets you can trust me with anything can't you?" she said with a soft smile at the punk

"Yeah, I guess..." Chloe leaned in and planted a kiss on Max's cheek before getting up "c'mon get your ass up I need to go get my shop open and if you're not going to school today might as well tag along to save me from the monotony of daily labor"

* * *

Max walked up to Kate's door and paused looking back on an apprehensive Victoria

"Jeez lighten up Vic, Kate agreed to this you do know that?"

"Yeah but what if she accepted just to yell at me and never speak to me again?"

Max mentally facepalmed at the statement, for someone with a crush on Kat Victoria was seemingly willfully ignorant of her genuine good nature

"... Victoria you do know that Kate is about as vindictive as a bunny? The fact she even agreed to meet with you should show you that. So grow up and face this" Max said as she grabbed Victoria by the wrist so she wouldn't run and knocked Kate's door gently. The door opened with a click and Max was faced with the smiling form of Kate, Max used her free arm to hug her before practically dragging a frozen Victoria into the room and sitting her down

"Well now that that's over with. Kate can I hold Alice again?" Max said with a sheepish grin as she stole glances at the bunny in her cage

"Yes, Max you can hold her." Kate said as she got up to get Alice out of her cage "she doesn't need to stay in the cage to live, also for some weird reason she seemed to really like you petting her" Kate said with a smile as she set Alice into Max's lap, eliciting a quiet happy squeal from the girl as she begun lavishing the bunny with gentle pets

Victoria stayed silent watching the entire exchange and starting to panic as Kate sat down opposite Victoria, the little table they had set up separating the two of them as the willfully ignorant brunette could be heard gushing over Alice in the background

"So..." Kate began, trailing off

"So..." Victoria echoed sitting in an almost awkward silence 

"Max tell me you have something you wanted to talk to me about?" Kate said with gentle smile towards Victoria

"Oh about that.... I'm sorry... I-I wanted to say that I'm sorry" Victoria said shooting a glare at the floor to avoid eye contact

"Oh that's okay I forgive you" Kate said in a soft tone that warmed Victoria up. Upon hearing Kate and processing what exactly she had just said, Victoria's gaze snapped up to look Kate in they eyes. Kate was smiling genuinely at Victoria.

"Why?" Victoria looked confused and conflicted at the idea of forgiveness

"Since Max brought up the Idea of you meeting with me I assume you went to her first to talk to me, and I trust Max. She wouldn't bring you here if she didn't think you meant the apology so I forgive you Victoria it really isn't that big of a deal, you want to start things of with me with a clean slate I guess?"

Victoria lit up at the suggestion as some of her usual confidence surged back into her

"I'd like that a lot actually, I'll try to keep my usual friends off your case"

Kate beamed at Victoria at that statement "Wonderful! it's so nice to make unlikely friends"

"Yeah... Friends..." Victoria said with a bittersweet smile towards the girl

Max Watched the interaction with a smile as she pet Alice, she had a feeling that this would work at a lot better than what she had hoped initially 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so that's it for this chapter, I don't really read back anything that I post in excruciating detail so sorry for any inconsistencies or spelling mistakes, I can't promise the next chapter won't take another month but I can promise there will be a next chapter.


End file.
